State colleges could get more power to raise tuition

Published: Tuesday, April 3, 2012 at 9:33 p.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, April 3, 2012 at 9:33 p.m.

A bill in the Legislature would allow the state’s colleges and universities to increase tuition to the Southern regional average. It could cost Nicholls State University and Fletcher Technical Community College students more money over the long haul.

House Bill 275, by Rep. John Schroder, R-Covington, is the latest effort by lawmakers to raise tuition to make up for state budget cuts. The bill is assigned to the House Education

Committee.

Louisiana students have historically paid significantly less in college tuition than their peers in the Southern region, who in turn pay less than students

elsewhere.

In 2010-11, the average annual tuition and fees in Louisiana was $4,435, according to the latest data from the Southern Regional Education Board. The Southern regional average was $6,203; the national average was $6,537.

Local tuition is even lower. During that same period, tuition and fees at Nicholls cost $4,290 a year. That’s lower than the state

average.

Since Shroeder’s bill wouldn’t take effect until next year, data isn’t available for how much the increase will cost students. But had the bill taken effect in 2010, a Nicholls student would have seen tuition jump from $4,290 to $6,203 — a 31 percent increase.

Local administrators say it’s unlikely that increase would happen all at once, especially since the bill would leave tuition authority to the state’s university-system boards.

Travis Lavigne, chancellor at Fletcher Technical Community College, said the community-college system is unlikely to make drastic changes to tuition soon after passing last year’s bill that equalized tuition among

community colleges. That move resulted in price hikes for most students.

“That was a significant increase for students,” Lavigne said. “Any increase this year would be an incremental one. I don’t foresee us making any huge increases.”

At Nicholls, President Stephen Hulbert said students won’t suddenly find themselves paying the same as other universities. “This is basically saying we want to have a goal of meeting the average,” he said.

Hulbert acknowledged that Nicholls’ low cost is a serious selling point for students and said his administration would ideally like to keep tuition low. But he said the state’s budget crunch has made that impossible.

“The reality is the state is no longer able to fund higher education,” he said. “The cost of the tuition is going up. That’s the reality.”

Still, Hulbert said, Nicholls isn’t going to be more expensive relative to other schools anytime soon. If the Southern average keeps moving and the school keeps adding the 10 percent annual tuition increase the Legislature allows now, Nicholls wouldn’t meet the average until 2032.

“Tuition is going to go up, but you’re still going to find Nicholls costs far less than other institutions,” Hulbert said. “And we still provide the small class sizes that are attractive to students.”

Hulbert also said that raising tuition has consequences beyond students’ pocketbooks. The state’s scholarship, especially TOPS, will cost the state more as tuition

increases.

“We support this bill conceptually,” he said, “but we acknowledge there are a number of questions that exist among legislators.”

Students on the Nicholls campus say they’re worried that policymakers are leaning on them to pay the costs of education.

“This isn’t going to affect me because I’m graduating, but I think it would change a lot of people’s plans if tuition keeps going up like this,” said nursing senior Kristen Braud of Gray.

Braud said she understands why Nicholls might need to raise prices, especially if the state keeps cutting.

“Our nursing program is one of the best in the state, and it costs a lot less than most others,” she said. “I guess they need to pay for that somehow.”

Melynda Rose Lirette, an elementary education junior from Houma, said every dollar that goes toward tuition is another out of her student loans and grants that she can’t use for living costs.

“I can’t really work a whole lot during school or my grades start to suffer,” she said. “So every time tuition increases, it hurts.”

Staff Writer Matthew Albright can be reached at 448-7635 or at matthew.albright@

<p>A bill in the Legislature would allow the state's colleges and universities to increase tuition to the Southern regional average. It could cost Nicholls State University and Fletcher Technical Community College students more money over the long haul. </p><p>House Bill 275, by Rep. John Schroder, R-Covington, is the latest effort by lawmakers to raise tuition to make up for state budget cuts. The bill is assigned to the House Education </p><p>Committee.</p><p>Louisiana students have historically paid significantly less in college tuition than their peers in the Southern region, who in turn pay less than students </p><p>elsewhere. </p><p>In 2010-11, the average annual tuition and fees in Louisiana was $4,435, according to the latest data from the Southern Regional Education Board. The Southern regional average was $6,203; the national average was $6,537. </p><p>Local tuition is even lower. During that same period, tuition and fees at Nicholls cost $4,290 a year. That's lower than the state </p><p>average. </p><p>Since Shroeder's bill wouldn't take effect until next year, data isn't available for how much the increase will cost students. But had the bill taken effect in 2010, a Nicholls student would have seen tuition jump from $4,290 to $6,203 — a 31 percent increase. </p><p>Local administrators say it's unlikely that increase would happen all at once, especially since the bill would leave tuition authority to the state's university-system boards. </p><p>Travis Lavigne, chancellor at Fletcher Technical Community College, said the community-college system is unlikely to make drastic changes to tuition soon after passing last year's bill that equalized tuition among </p><p>community colleges. That move resulted in price hikes for most students. </p><p>“That was a significant increase for students,” Lavigne said. “Any increase this year would be an incremental one. I don't foresee us making any huge increases.” </p><p>At Nicholls, President Stephen Hulbert said students won't suddenly find themselves paying the same as other universities. “This is basically saying we want to have a goal of meeting the average,” he said. </p><p>Hulbert acknowledged that Nicholls' low cost is a serious selling point for students and said his administration would ideally like to keep tuition low. But he said the state's budget crunch has made that impossible.</p><p>“The reality is the state is no longer able to fund higher education,” he said. “The cost of the tuition is going up. That's the reality.” </p><p>Still, Hulbert said, Nicholls isn't going to be more expensive relative to other schools anytime soon. If the Southern average keeps moving and the school keeps adding the 10 percent annual tuition increase the Legislature allows now, Nicholls wouldn't meet the average until 2032.</p><p>“Tuition is going to go up, but you're still going to find Nicholls costs far less than other institutions,” Hulbert said. “And we still provide the small class sizes that are attractive to students.”</p><p>Hulbert also said that raising tuition has consequences beyond students' pocketbooks. The state's scholarship, especially TOPS, will cost the state more as tuition </p><p>increases. </p><p>“We support this bill conceptually,” he said, “but we acknowledge there are a number of questions that exist among legislators.”</p><p>Students on the Nicholls campus say they're worried that policymakers are leaning on them to pay the costs of education. </p><p>“This isn't going to affect me because I'm graduating, but I think it would change a lot of people's plans if tuition keeps going up like this,” said nursing senior Kristen Braud of Gray. </p><p>Braud said she understands why Nicholls might need to raise prices, especially if the state keeps cutting.</p><p>“Our nursing program is one of the best in the state, and it costs a lot less than most others,” she said. “I guess they need to pay for that somehow.”</p><p>Melynda Rose Lirette, an elementary education junior from Houma, said every dollar that goes toward tuition is another out of her student loans and grants that she can't use for living costs.</p><p>“I can't really work a whole lot during school or my grades start to suffer,” she said. “So every time tuition increases, it hurts.” </p><p>Staff Writer Matthew Albright can be reached at 448-7635 or at matthew.albright@</p><p>dailycomet.com.</p>